California Governor newsom Signs Bills banning Masking by Law Enforcement, Including ICE
SACRAMENTO, CA – California Governor Gavin Newsom signed five bills into law on Saturday, prohibiting most masking by law enforcement officers, including those with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The legislation makes California the first state in the nation to enact such a measure, aiming to ensure federal agents are identifiable during operations.
According to a press release from the Governor’s office, the new laws require law and immigration enforcement officers to remain identifiable “by name or badge number,” with masks only permitted “when absolutely necessary.”
The bills are a direct response to concerns over ICE tactics.Newsom’s office stated that ICE agents have “wrongfully arrested citizens, concealed their identities, and undermined openness,” and had previously dismantled rules protecting sensitive locations.
“Thay dismantled rules that once kept enforcement away from schools, hospitals, and churches, fueling student absences and eroding community trust,” the statement read. “Our places of learning and healing must never be turned into the hunting grounds this federal administration has tried to make them out to be.”
The legislation also includes provisions to protect vulnerable populations. It mandates notification to families when immigration enforcement intends to visit a school. emergency rooms and other nonpublic areas within hospitals are now off-limits to immigration enforcement without a judicial warrant or court order,and patient information collected by healthcare providers is explicitly protected as medical information.
Newsom highlighted the impact on families, stating, “I have sat with mothers who are afraid to send their children to school, and with farmworker families who live every day with the fear of being torn apart. No family should ever have to carry that weight. California is choosing true public safety.”
The Governor teased the new legislation on X (formerly Twitter), directing a message towards Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, stating she was “about to have a bad day.” This post prompted Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli to refer the matter to the U.S.Secret Service for a threat assessment.
Newsom’s office has not detailed how the state will enforce the masking ban against a federal agency, but emphasized its strong opposition to recent ICE actions.
